Credit Manager’s Index holds steady in February

The manufacturing index rose 1.5 percent – largely due to a 10.2 percent jump in the dollar collections component. The services index fell 1.6 percent to below 50 for the first time, with many survey respondents reporting a slowdown in customer payments.

“Overall, the combined index tells a story similar to the one we have been seeing for some time: a slow erosion of the combined index, with more weakness in services than in manufacturing,” Daniel North, Euler Hermes ACI chief economist, said in a news release. “The performance of the macroeconomy continues to be dismal, and it is quite likely that a recession has already started.”

The CMI is a monthly survey of the business economy based on commercial credit and collections. Credit managers are asked to rate favorable factors – such as sales, new credit applications and dollar collections – and unfavorable factors – such as bankruptcy filings, rejected credit applications and accounts placed for collections.